H.C. Bailey's Reggie Fortune and the Golden Age of Detective Fiction

H.C. Bailey's detective Reggie Fortune was one of the most popular protagonists of the Golden Age of detective fiction. Fortune appeared in nine novels yet it was in a series of 84 short stories that were published from 1920 to 1940 where he truly shone, combining elements of several popular archetypes--the eccentric logician, the forensic investigator, the hard-boiled interrogator, the psychological profiler, the defender of justice.
This critical study examines the Fortune stories in the context of other popular detective fiction of the era. Bailey's classics are distinguished by well-clued puzzles, brilliant sleuthing, vivid description and social critique, with Fortune evoking images of Don Quixote and the Arthurian Knights in his pursuit of truth and justice in an uncaring world.

About the author

Laird R. Blackwell is a humanities professor emeritus at Sierra Nevada College in the Lake Tahoe area of western Nevada, where he taught psychology and literature for 31 years. He is the author of four critical studies of detective fiction for McFarland and the recipient of nominations for an Edgar Award and an Agatha Award.

Product details

• Authors: Laird R. Blackwell, Blackwell Laird R.
• Publisher: Ingram Publishers Services
• Languages: English
• Age Recommendation: from age 18
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 14.07.2017
• EAN: 9781476670690
• ISBN: 978-1-4766-7069-0
• No. of pages: 188
• Dimensions: 152 mm x 229 mm x 10 mm
• Weight: 249 g
• Illustrations: Raster,schwarz-weiss
• Subjects: Fiction > Poetry, drama; LITERARY CRITICISM / Modern / 20th Century, Literary studies: from c 1900 -, Literary studies: fiction, novelists & prose writers, Literary studies: fiction, novelists and prose writers, Literary studies: c 1900 to c 2000, LITERARY CRITICISM / Novel as Form